Puerto Princesa posts 11.02% rise in tourist arrivals for Q1

• Source: http://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/996591
• Wednesday, June 21, 2017 12:45 pm

By Gerardo C. Reyes, Jr. (PNA)

PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, June 21 –- An 11.02% increase in tourist arrivals was recorded by the City Tourism Office (CTO) for the 1st Quarter of 2017 compared to the same period last year.

Tourism Officer Aileen Cynthia Amurao, who released the statement Tuesday afternoon, said that for the first quarter this year, the city received 266,780 foreign and domestic tourist arrivals, which is higher by 26,480 to 2015’s record of 240,300.

She explained that the data was churned out by 258 accommodation establishments that billeted them during their stay in Puerto Princesa.

Amurao said that though they are expecting a decrease in tourist arrivals in the second quarter because of the May travel advisory issued by the United States and United Kingdom, they remain confident that it will not significant as Palawan and Puerto Princesa are really safe to visit.

Many of the travel packages, she explained, have been availed by foreign tourists prior to the advisory, and if they find that the city and province “remain to be safe,” they will still come and spend their holidays in the “World’s Best Island.”

She furthered that the decrease is not only going to be felt in Puerto Princesa and Palawan, but in the country as a whole following the Bohol incident with the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) and the ongoing conflict in Marawi City.

All these, she stated, have ill-effects to tourism in national scope.

“These are the challenge[s] that we are facing right now, and no matter how good our tourism promotions are, the tourism industry will really be affected,” she said.

Another important thing in promoting tourism, according to Amurao, is the government’s intervention like developing potential tourism sites, which the City Government of Puerto Princesa is implementing.

Interventions include development of access roads, construction of tourism related infrastructures, like eco-center, green toilet, and livelihood assistance for the local residents.

Meanwhile, data from 2016 disclosed that tourist arrivals by country of residence had the United States contributing the highest number of visits at 45,482.

It was followed by Taiwanese nationals which have 43,936 arrivals, while Koreans have 16,235.

China ranks 4th with 15,711 Chinese nationals, who visited this city, and the fifth is United Kingdom with 10,083.